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Developing academic writing skills Once you have researched, located and evaluated sources of information, you will be expected to demonstrate your understanding of newly assimilated knowledge in your written assessment tasks. This usually involves following a particular academic style in your writing. Academic writing requires the use of more formal language than is used in everyday speech and text, which means no slang, no contractions (for example shouldn’t; won’t), no text message shorthand (txt spk) and no emotive language. It also involves demonstrating that you have used scholarly sources of information to support your narrative. Your spelling, grammar and punctuation should be accurate, your work logically structured, and your sentences and paragraphs well-formed.
Visit the learning Skills Unit (LSU) online for further information at: http://www.cqu.edu.au/currentstudent/international-students/ student-support/learning-skillsunit
During your time at University, you may be asked to write some of the following: annotated bibliography, case study, position paper, discussion paper, essay, book review, reflective journal and/or report. Each type has its own rules of style and format and it is important to find out about these before you begin—first check your course profile and then consult your lecturers if you are unsure. Before you begin composing your response to any assessment item, it is very important that you take time to analyse the question, topic or task you are addressing so that you know what to look for when reading and researching. The ability to compile a comprehensive set of lecture or tutorial notes will help you make sense of the information when it comes time to reading and re-writing for an assessment. A good set of notes will help with the writing of essays and will ensure that everything is said in your own words. Students who do not take lecture notes often end up copying material from books and the internet, which can lead to plagiarism.
Write using complete sentences Academic writing requires complete sentences and precise language. Sentences are the basic building blocks of your writing; each needs to have a subject and a verb. You need to make sure that each sentence can stand alone and makes sense on its own. Reading aloud can help you decide whether the sentence is well-formed, with a clear meaning. As a guide, aim for less than 30 words per sentence.
Arrange your writing in paragraphs A paragraph is a series of around five or six sentences that are all related to a single point or idea. Typically a paragraph is about 200–250 words and starts with a topic sentence that states the main point you are making in that paragraph. The other sentences in the paragraph should all relate to this topic sentence, providing additional: •• explanation •• evidence and/or •• examples. The final sentence in each paragraph should sum up the material on that aspect. It is often useful to revisit those final sentences when you write your conclusion.
For more information on sentences, see: http://unilearning.uow.edu.au/ writing/2b.html For help with incomplete sentences, see: http://writingcenter.unc.edu/ resources/handouts-demos/ citation/fragments-and-run-ons
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There are different types of paragraphs. These include the following: cause-effect, problem-solution, and comparison-contrast type paragraphs. These patterns differ in the way their topic sentences are written. For example, a cause-effect type paragraph might start with a topic sentence that states that a certain problem can be attributed to a number of factors. Similarly, a comparison type sentence will provide the aspect to be compared within the topic sentence, while a problemsolution type paragraph will start with a clear statement of the issue in the topic sentence and then seek to resolve it in the sentences that follow.
Writing an academic essay Most academic essays follows a similar general structure, with three main components: 1. An introduction,
Use the assessment task details in your course profile to structure your writing—these are available at: http://nexus.cqu.edu.au/ courseprofile
2. A series of body paragraphs (the number will depend on the complexity of your topic, the information available and the word limit of your essay), and 3. A conclusion. Within each paragraph you must refer to (cite) the sources of specific information and ideas that you found during your literature research to support the topic that you are addressing. At the end of your essay, you should prepare a list of all sources (references), arranged alphabetically. If you compile a full record of your sources as you write your essay you will save yourself a lot of time and stress in the final stages of preparation. An academic essay will often contain an argument beginning with a contentious statement, the author will consider different viewpoints before arriving at a conclusion.
Writing an abstract (summary) Some essays and other assessment items ask for an abstract. This is a succinct summary of your essay and should state the following: the purpose of the assignment, the main areas/aspects covered and the main conclusions/findings. It should be written as continuous text, without headings, numbers or bullet points (dot points). Most academic journals require authors to write abstracts for their papers, so these can provide useful exemplars on which to model your own writing.
Writing a report Another type of assessment item you may be required to complete is a report. A report will often have a specific set of headings for the required sections. The section headings generally used in reports are: title page, executive summary, table of contents, introduction (including aim, scope, background), data collection methods, data analysis, conclusions, recommendations and references (check your course profile for any specific instructions/headings).
Guide to reference styles: http://www.cqu.edu.au/aboutus/service-and-facilities/ referencing/which-referencingstyle-do-i-use For more on academic arguments, see: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ owl/section/1/2/
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Your writing must be formal and objective, rather than being based on your own opinions and unsubstantiated beliefs. Reports are generally more succinct and focussed, using graphs, dot points (bullet points) and graphics to explain thing succinctly. As with an essay, you should refer to all sources by citing them within your report and including them in the list of references.
Writing the executive summary for a report Where required, this goes after the Title page, stating the purpose of the report, the main areas covered, the main conclusions/findings reached and any recommendations made.
Always provide details of all sources used in preparing your essay or report It is an important academic convention that you provide details of the sources to which you are referring in the body of your work (termed intext referencing, or citation). This includes information, ideas, images, diagrams, tables, photos, etc. The full details for each source should then be provided in a reference list at the end of your assessment. Equally importantly, you need to write your text in your own words, to demonstrate understanding and personal input. This rewriting process is termed paraphrasing, and is an important skill to develop through your studies at University. It is important to pay great attention to these aspects of your work to avoid any charge of plagiarism (using ideas and words of another person and passing them off as your own).
Information on referencing: https://www.cqu.edu.au/ student-life/services-andfacilites/referencing
Whether deliberate or unintentional, plagiarism carries severe penalties, and can be avoided by:
Information on plagiarism and how to avoid it: https://www.cqu.edu.au/ student-life/services-andfacilites/referencing/what-isplagiarism
•• referring to (citing) all sources within your text, and listing them at the end •• using quotation marks for short, direct quotes, followed by details of the source, for example, “procrastination is the thief of time” (Young 1765) •• using the correct layout for longer quotes—indent the whole section and use a slightly smaller font. For most academic assignments you should use quotes sparingly, since your lecturer will be looking for your analysis and personal input, based on the sources that you have consulted.
